    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book III)]
    [December 17, 2004]
    [Pages 3117-3118]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on Signing the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act
    of 2004
    December 17, 2004

        Good morning. In a few minutes, I will sign into law the most
    dramatic reform of our Nation's intelligence capabilities since
    President Harry S. Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947.
        Under this new law, our vast intelligence enterprise will become
    more unified, coordinated, and effective. It will enable us to better do
    our duty, which is to protect the American people.
        I want to thank the Members of Congress who have worked hard on this
    legislation. I particularly want to thank the leader of the Senate, Bill
    Frist, Speaker of the House Denny
    Hastert, and their counterparts in both
    bodies. I appreciate Senator Susan Collins
    from Maine and Senator Joe Lieberman
    from Connecticut for steering this legislation through the United States
    Senate. I appreciate Congressman Pete Hoekstra and Congresswoman Jane Harman
    for their leadership on this important issue as well. Welcome.
        I want to thank all the Members of Congress who have joined us today
    for your good work on this legislation. I appreciate the members of my
    administration who helped, and that would be Director Porter Goss, Director Bob Mueller, Condi Rice, and Fran
    Townsend. I particularly want to
    thank the 9/11 Commission, ably led by Tom Kean and Lee Hamilton. I want to
    thank the Commission members who are here as well.
        I pay my respects and offer our gratitude to the family members of
    the victims of September the 11th. Thank you for working hard on this
    issue. Thank you for remembering your loved one.
        Nearly six decades ago, our Nation and our allies faced a new--the
    new world of the cold war and the dangers of a new enemy. To defend the
    free world from an armed empire bent on conquest, visionary leaders
    created new institutions such as the NATO Alliance. The NATO Alliance
    was begun by treaty in this very room. President Truman also implemented
    a sweeping reorganization of the Federal Government. He established the
    Department of Defense, the Central Intelligence Agency, and the National
    Security Council.
        America, in this new century, again faces new threats. Instead of
    massed armies, we face stateless networks. We face killers who hide in
    our own cities. We must confront deadly technologies. To inflict great
    harm on our country, America's enemies need to be only right once. Our
    intelligence and law enforcement professionals in our Government must be
    right every single time. Our Government is adapting to confront and
    defeat these threats. We're staying on the offensive against the enemy.
    We'll take the fight to the terrorists abroad so we do not have to face
    them here at home.
        And here at home, we're strengthening our homeland defenses. We
    created the Department of Homeland Security. We have made the prevention
    of terror attacks the highest priority of the Department of Justice and
    the FBI. We'll continue to work with Congress to make sure they've got
    the resources necessary to do their jobs. We established the National
    Counterterrorism Center, where all the available intelligence on
    terrorist threats is brought together in one place and where joint
    action against the terrorists is planned.
        We have strengthened the security of our Nation's borders and ports
    of entry and transportation systems. The bill I sign today continues the
    essential reorganization of our Government. Those charged with
    protecting America must have the best possible intelligence information,
    and that information must be closely integrated to form the

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    clearest possible picture of the threats to our country.
        A key lesson of September the 11th, 2001, is that America's
    intelligence agencies must work together as a single, unified
    enterprise. The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004
    creates the position of Director of National Intelligence, or DNI, to be
    appointed by the President with the consent of the Senate.
        The Director will lead a unified intelligence community and will
    serve as the principle adviser to the President on intelligence matters.
    The DNI will have the authority to order the collection of new
    intelligence to ensure the sharing of information among agencies and to
    establish common standards for the intelligence community's personnel.
    It will be the DNI's responsibility to determine the annual budgets for
    all national intelligence agencies and offices and to direct how these
    funds are spent. These authorities, vested in a single official who
    reports directly to me, will make all our intelligence efforts better
    coordinated, more efficient, and more effective.
        The Director of the CIA will report to the DNI. The CIA will retain
    its core of responsibilities for collecting human intelligence,
    analyzing intelligence from all sources, and supporting American
    interests abroad at the direction of the President.
        The new law will preserve the existing chain of command and leave
    all our intelligence agencies, organizations, and offices in their
    current Departments. Our military commanders will continue to have quick
    access to the intelligence they need to achieve victory on the
    battlefield. And the law supports our efforts to ensure greater
    information sharing among Federal Departments and Agencies and also with
    appropriate State and local authorities.
        The many reforms in this act have a single goal, to ensure that the
    people in Government responsible for defending America have the best
    possible information to make the best possible decisions. The men and
    women of our intelligence community give America their very best every
    day, and in return, we owe them our full support. As we continue to
    reform and strengthen the intelligence community, we will do all that is
    necessary to defend its people and the Nation we serve.
        I'm now pleased and honored to sign into law the Intelligence Reform
    and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004.

    Note: The President spoke at 9:59 a.m. at the Andrew W. Mellon
    Auditorium. In his remarks, he referred to the National Commission on
    Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (9/11 Commission). S. 2845,
    approved December 17, was assigned Public Law No. 108-458. The Office of
    the Press Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of these
    remarks.